On Father's Day

Good News! The heating guy showed up on Wednesday and we got the gas line installed, pressure tested, and the trench backfilled. I even managed to get some grass seed spread over the trench scar yesterday so the rains forecast over the next several days can get busy watering the new seed. My portion of that project is mostly complete so now we wait for a week or so before the heating guy returns to install the new water heater. Time to shift gears and move on to Something Else.

Something Else showed up this morning in the form of Eric's car which needs a new stabilizer bar link installed. That ought to keep me busy for a little while and may give me the incentive to replace the same links on the Vue. Those links tend to wear out and create noises in the front suspension over time and I believe ours have needed replacement for some time. And then there are the shock absorbers that need replacing on the truck. Never a dull moment here at the Maineiacs In Motion RV, Home Improvement, and Auto Center.

Now we find out that our government has been collecting information on our phone calls and internet usage in order to help keep us safe from terrorists. Part of me wants to be outraged over more loss of personal liberty. Another part of me is thankful that these actions are being taken to protect us. At least "providing for the common defense" is actually a constitutional duty of the federal government! I just wish I had more confidence in the folks that were running these programs. Will they do the right things with the info they gather or will they use the defense against terrorism to justify more politically based dirty tricks against political foes? I'd like to have more confidence ... but recent events sure don't justify it!

I see where Sunday next (June 16th) is Father's Day. I am very fortunate to have 3 great kids who are able to make good decisions and generally do what is best for them and their families. I don't want to take a lot of credit for them turning out that way as I'm sure their mother had a much greater influence than I. But I sure do notice that fatherhood has taken a beating these last many years. The women's "liberation" movement(s) have done a great deal to further the standing of women in the US and elsewhere for the past 40 or so years. But at what cost? Many (men and women) seem to believe that fathers are only necessary for conception and science is working to minimize this need. Need examples? Just watch TV. Ever notice how many commercials tend to show the bumbling Dad who knows almost nothing and needs mom or the kids to help him survive? I find this trend disturbing. I read recently that in about 40% of all American households with children - the mom is the primary "breadwinner." And in 40% of those households - the mom is a single parent. There are many reasons for this but in my humble opinion - it needs to stop and be reversed! So - with Father's Day rapidly approaching I say find a father (I mean a real father ... one committed to caring for his kids) and congratulate him. We apparently are a vanishing breed and must need encouraging to keep on doing "the right things."